Local Internet advertising is a rapidly growing advertising methodology for local companies as offline and more traditional procedures of utilizing newspapers, direct mail and television are rapidly losing their efficacy. No longer can these traditional mediums provide a competitive advantage in the speed of today’s online marketplace. More and more individuals are bombarded by advertising messages for various products and services regardless of where they may be. For geographically specific companies, it is imperative that they take advantage of marketing strategies that allow them to leverage a local Internet advertising approach.

Local Internet advertising is exactly how it sounds. This mechanism gives businesses the ability to target their advertisements to the geographically specific market in which they operate. The importance of catering to local customers through these methods is becoming more and more of a necessity in any brick-and-mortar companies advertising plan. When customers search for products and services they no longer reach for television or the yellow books. Nowadays the Internet and various mobile applications provide the information that consumers are seeking. As this trend continues to develop, businesses have come to understand that it is imperative that they establish a foothold in this ever-growing market. Companies need to understand that even though consumers may not be planning to purchase directly through the Internet, they utilize it as a resource to gather information and get an idea about price and other decision-making factors before they call or stop in your location. Local Internet advertising provides the reach that brick-and-mortar organizations need to capture their online consumer and provide information for those seeking their services.

Many companies have turned to pay per click advertising as their chosen method of local Internet advertising. This approach can be targeted towards a specific area and Google also provides a rich platform to allow for addition targeting refinements. The business owner does not absorb any cost until consumers click on and are subsequently delivered to the advertiser’s website. Another media that has seen a growth in its utilization is that of blogs and e-mail marketing. Companies that run e-mail promotions tend to utilize squeeze pages that direct their customers to an e-mail form. Once the e-mail addresses are obtained from their clients, the company can then establish its e-mail campaign with subscribers. This is effective for local businesses as they can offer specific deals to walk-in clients while allowing their online clientele to benefit from online specific promotions.

One of the most basic and often overlooked areas in this developing online landscape is the utilization of social networking sites to promote local business. Sites like Twitter and Facebook are incredibly powerful communication tools that companies can utilize to push geographic specific advertising. Business owners can develop a rich family base of new and returning customers through these mechanisms while enhancing their engagement with their customers. Not only will they also be able to capture e-mail addresses and deliver their supplemental marketing campaigns but also the social networking arm of the marketing strategy has a much greater reach than that of a geo-specific campaign. While local Internet advertising may not be the best solution for all forms of businesses, many have seen tremendous results by utilizing these tools and techniques.

How much of a percent of your companies advertising/marketing budget is allocated towards online? If you are all in or all out, please share as to your reasons why.

About Alan Moore: Alan is an Internet Marketing Consultant with ReachLocal Baltimore. His mission is to help you increase your revenues and decrease unproductive advertising expenses through proven, online marketing strategies. He manages over $2,100,000 in yearly marketing budgets and has worked with local businesses, agencies and the US government. Give him a call at (877)655-3438 to schedule a Free Online Marketing Consultation.